Process for the dyeing of textile material with dye carrier of predominantly higher boiling alkyl benzenes

ABSTRACT

THIS INVENTION RELATES TO A PROCESS FOR DYEING OR PRINTIN POLYESTER FIBRES IN THE FORM OF LOOSE FIBRE, YARN OR PIECE GOODS USING DISPERSE DYES IN THE PRESENCE OF CARRIERS WHICH CONTAIN AT LEAST 30% BY WEIGHT OF ALKYLBENZENES.

U.S. Cl. 8-174 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to a process for dyeing or printing polyester fibres in the form of loose fibre, yarn or piece goods using disperse dyes in the presence of carriers which contain at least 30% by weight of alkylbenzenes.

It is known that polyester fibres cannot be satisfactorily dyed by exhaust dyeing methods unless a carrier is present in the dyebath, or unless dyeing is carried out at temperatures above 120 C. under pressure. A great number of carriers have been suggested for this purpose, the best known of which include orthophenylphenol and chlorinated benzenes emulsified in water.

The use of known carriers frequently involves disadvantages, such as irritation from the odour, toxicity of the vapours and danger of spotting on the dyed goods.

It has now been found that polyester fibres and textiles can be dyed and printed with excellent results by using as carrier a mixture of aromatic compounds which consists to at least 30% by weight of alkylbenzenes, in which the benzene nucleus bear two or more methyl radicals or at least one ethyl, propyl or butyl radical as substituents. The use of such carrier mixtures, which begin to boil preferably at temperatures above 150 (3., leads to dyeings and prints having a levelness (not spotting) superior to those produced in the presence of known carriers for polyester fibres.

The new carriers can be obtained, for example, from the residues remaining after distillation in the bulk manufacture of ortho-, metaor para-xylene or other alkylbenzenes.

The dye carriers thus obtained generally contain more than 50% by weight of alkylbenzenes, in which the henzene nucleus bears as substituents two or more methyl radicals or at least one ethyl, propyl or butyl radical. In addition, the residues left after distillation in the manufacture of the aforenamed products usually contain diphenyl and small amounts of naphthalene, anthracene, phenanthrene and fluorene. The boiling points of these dye carrier mixtures, under normal conditions of application, range from 160 C. to 280 C. The last-named compounds can, if desired, be eliminated from the distillation residues, in which case dye carriers are obtained which boil in the region of 160 C. to 185 C.

It can he of advantage to employ mixtures of dye carriers which besides the aforenamed aromatic hydrocarbons contain other aromatic compounds, possibly bearing non-water-solubilizing substituents, for example diphenyl oxide, benzoic acid methylester, or aromatic compounds containing halogen. Examples of non-water-solubilizing substituents are halogen atoms, nitro, cyano, hydroxyl, alkyl and alkoxy groups.

The claimed mixtures have a more balanced effect on dyeing than their single components alone. At room temperature the mixtures dissolve solid dye carriers, such as naphthalene and diphenyl, which, if present in the bath United States Patent 0 ice alone, tend to crystallize and may then interfere with the progress of dyeing.

The normal dyeing (which includes pad dyeing) and printing methods for polyester fibres are employed with the carriers conforming to this invention. It is, however, advisable to add the carrier to the dyebath, padding liquor or printing paste in the form of a fine dispersion, or preferably as an aqueous emulsion, in amounts of about 2% to 35% in relation to the weight of the material to be dyed or printed. The emulsions are best prepared with emulsifiers, suitable examples being the adducts of ethylene oxide on alkylphenols, such as nonylphenol and dodecylphenol, or on castor oil, and alkylbenzene sulphonates, dodecylphenoldiphenylether disulphonate, neutralized sulphonates of the condensation products of phenol or naphthalene with formaldehyde, and mixtures of the aforenamed emulsifiers.

The emulsifier or emulsifier mixture is added to the dye carrier conforming to this invention, or to a mixture of such a carrier and known carriers or solvents, in amounts which generally range from 5% to 30% by weight, or preferably 1525% by weight, on the amount of the carrier. The emulsifier or emulsifier mixture is prepared with an anionic dispersing agent, preferably in an amount greater than 60% by weight, more especially from to by weight, and a non-ionic dispersing agent in amounts of 5% to 15% by weight.

The most suitable anion-active dispersing agents for use with the emulsifiers are those which cause little foaming with the active substance of the carriers of this invention in the dyeing process. These anion-active dispersing agents include sulphonated castor oils, sulphonated oleic acid esters, alkylnaphthalene sulphonates, succinic acid diethyl-hexylester sulphonates, xylene sulphonates and toluene sulphonates. Examples of suitable non-ionic dispersing agents are fatty acid ethers, arylphenoland alkylphenolpolyglycol ethers; dispersing agents having more than 25-30% ethylene oxide units in a maximum amount of 5% should be present in the emulsifier mixture.

Polyglycolether derivatives having approximately 6l5 moles of added ethylene oxide groups occupying an intermediate position, especially if they are partially carboxymethylated.

Carboxymethylated polyglycolether derivatives having more than 25 moles of ethylene oxide are comparable in their action to non-carboxymethylated emulsifiers of similar ethylene oxide content.

The use of an emulsifier with the highest possible anionic activity is necessary with the active carrier substances of this invention in order to obtain deep dyeings. If the emulsifier mixture contains an over-high percentage of non-ionic emulsifier, it is hardly possible to reach deep black dyeings. Conversely, if the emulsifier is only anion-active (i.e. if the specific sulphonates are dodecylbenzene sulphonates), the dye tends to exhaust too rapidly onto the fibre and the dyeings show inferior rubbing fastness. The emulsifier preparations may either be added directly to the dyebath, padding liquid or printing paste, or they may 'be mixed with a suitable dye and the mixture worked up as a dye preparation. While the process of the present invention is intended primarily for the dyeing of textiles made of polyester fibres of high melting point, it is fundamentally suitable for use with other hydrophobic, poorly dyeable fibres having a large number of ester groups in the molecule, for example cellulose triacetate and linear polyurethanes.

The assistants described herein are highly suitable for use in dyeing and printing with disperse, developed and vat dyes, being applicable in the dyeing or printing process itself or as a separate pretreatment. The normal dyeing and printing methods for disperse dyes are employed, the dyes being invariably added to the dyebath in finely dispersed form. The dyed or printed goods can be submitted to a reduction clearing treatment if necessary.

In the following examples the parts and percentages are by weight and the temperatures are given in degrees centigrade.

EXAMPLE 1 A dyebath is set at 40 with 4000 parts of water, 2 g./l. of anhydrous ammonium sulphate, 0.6 part of a finely dispersed mixture of 50% each of the dyes of the formulae 0H and H6 I NH:

HzN OH H NH: (A)

and 6 parts of assistant (b) (1) (see table), which emulsifies in the bath. The pH is adjusted to with formic acid and 100 parts of a fabric of polyester fibre are entered. In 30 minutes the temperature is raised to about 97 and the fabric dyed for about 1 hour at this temperature. On removal it is washed off, rinsed and dried. A level, well penetrated blue dyeing is obtained on the polyester fabric which has excellent fastness properties.

Dyeings of the same good quality are obtained when one of the assistants (b) (2) to (5) in the following table is used.

With the disclosed assistants, dyeings of excellent levelness and high fastness can be produced with the dyes of the following formulae yellow CHQCHZOC O CH:

(E) yellowish-brown o,NC -N=N-Qmomomoo0cm NH0 0 02B: Scarlet 4 EXAMPLE 2 A polyester fabric is printed with a paste of the following composition:

The print is dried at 60-100, steamed for 20 minutes,

rinsed and dried. A yellow-brown print with excellent fastness properties is obtained.

TABLE (a) Dye carrier mixtures 1 Percent 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene 25 1,3,5-trimethy1benzene 1,2-ethyltoluene 1,3-ethyltoluene 45 1,4ethyltoluene n-Butylbenzene 10 Sec.-butylbenzene Tert.-butylbenzene 20 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene 5 1,3-5-trimethylbenzene 10 tert.-butylbenzene 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene n} 16 Sec.buty1benzene Ortho-, meta-, para-ethyltoluene 27 n-Propylbenzene 8 Isopropylbenzene 3 n-Butylbenzene 5 Diphenyl 20 Naphthalene l Anthracene, phenanthrene, fluorene 5 Ethylbenzene 0.5 Para-xylene 1 Meta-xylene 2 Ortho-xylene 3 Isopropylbenzene 1 Meta-ethyltoluene 20 Para-ethyltoluene 5 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene 7 Ortho-ethyltoluene u} 6 5 Isobutylbenzene 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene 30 n-Propylbenzene 4.5

Sec.-butylbenzene 0.5 1,3-diethylbenzene 1.5

30% of mixture '1, 40% diphenylether, 12.5% diphenyl, and 17.5% naphthalene.

TABLEContinued 30.0% of mixture 1,

5% chloronaphthalene,

5% benzoic acid methylester, tetraline,

12.5% diphenyl,

17.5% naphthalene, and diphenylether.

(b) Assistants (mixtures of dye carriers and emulsifiers) 80% dye carrier mixture (a) (1), 10% castor oil polyglycolether moles ethylene oxide) and 10% sodium dodecylbenzenesulphonate.

% dye carrier mixture (a) (2), 13% castor oil polyglycolether (30 moles ethylene oxide) and 12% sodium dodecylbenzenesulphonate.

% dye carrier mixture (a) (3),

10% castor oil polyglycolether (30 moles ethylene oxide) and 10% sodium dodecylbenzenesulphonate.

75% dye carrier mixture (a) (5),

13% nonylphenolpolyglycolether (10 moles ethylene oxide),

6% castor oil polyglycolether (30 moles ethylene oxide) and 6% monoethanolamine salt of n-dodecylbenzenesulphonic acid.

Having thus disclosed the invention what we claim is:

1. In a process for dyeing or printing polyester fibre with an aqueous dispersion containing dye carrier, the improvement wherein the dye carrier is a mixture of aromatic compounds at least 30 percent by weight of which consists of alkylbenzene in which the benzene nucleus bears as substituents two or more methyl radicals or at least one ethyl, propyl or butyl radical, and the mixture boils in the region of from to 280 C.

2. A process according to claim 1 wherein the fibre is in the form of loose fibre, yarn or piece goods, and the dye carrier is a mixture of carriers which boils in the region of from 160 to C.

3. A process according to claim 1 wherein the fibre is in the form of loose fibre, yarn or piece goods, and the dye carrier contains diphenyl, naphthalene, anthracene, phenanthrene and fluorene.

4. A process according to claim 1 wherein the fibre is in the form of loose fibre, yarn or piece goods, and the dye carrier contains a member selected from the group consisting of diphenyloxide and substituted diphenyloxide, any substituted diphenyloxide being essentially Water insoluble.

5. A process according to claim 1 wherein the fibre is in the form of loose fibre, yarn or piece goods, and the dyeing or printing is carried out in the presence of from 5% to 30% by weight of emulsifier which contains more than 60% by weight of anion-active dispersing agent.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,803,008 4/1931 Ellis et al. 894 3,097,047 7/ 1963 Weinstein 8-94 2,828,180 3/1958 Sertorio 862 1,738,978 12/ 1929 Whitehead 8-94 3,189,400 6/1965 Fortess et a1. 8--55 3,046,076 7/1962 Upshur 8-55 JOHN C. COOPER, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 8-94 

